Costco Haul Vlog - February 2017 - (PLUS a look at our overboard grocery spending)

Yet another big grocery trip - we spent almost $300, PHEW! But we hadn't been to Costco in a full month, and it was time. Here's my vlog of my Costco haul:


For $300, we bought lots of snacks, a bunch of fresh fruit and veggies, some frozen stuff, some pantry items (my kid is set for mac and cheese for at least a month, if not more), and some health and beauty items (I'm particularly excited to see if the Kirkland contact lens solution is acceptable - which I suspect it is - because that will save me quite a bit of money over Target's house brand). The video has details AND prices, so please watch.

According to Mint, we definitely went a bit overboard with grocery shopping in February, and I'm trying to figure out exactly how we went off the rails. We started off the month with a big trip to Trader Joe's, and that certainly didn't help. This was also the month I discovered Aldi and my pantry shows it - I think that my spending at Aldi will come down as I get used to it (and I also bought a $20 steam cleaner there). There was a trip to Whole Foods, but that was primarily vitamins, and another trip to Rainbow Natural Foods, but that was mostly for household items.

What really got us, of all things, were quick little trips to Kroger - we made ELEVEN trips to Kroger in February, and that includes me going for a short walk and spending $3-$8 in a trip, but it adds up for sure. I also bought food to bring to work, which is new - frozen meals and snacks to keep me away from restaurants, food delivery, and vending machines.

We didn't go to YDFM at all in February because I'm the one who usually goes but instead I was at work and my husband was busy and didn't have time. I think we need to do more YDFM and less Kroger though.

I used all the rebate apps, but most of that cash still hasn't come in yet because of cash-out thresholds. Still, that saved us or will eventually save us money. (I really like Mobisave because it's an instant cash out - even if it's just 10 cents.)

I want to keep our spending for our family of three to about $100-$150/week, and we busted that, but I guess what I'm writing around is that some of our spending at grocery stores wasn't food, and I probably should figure out if our grocery budget means "all spending at any grocery store" or "food only."

In any case, we had a lot of fun at Costco and hopefully we're set for groceries for a while to come.

Aldi Haul (but no vlog) - OMG I GET IT NOW - February 2017

So as you know from a previous blog post and vlog, I finally went back to Aldi for the first time in eons and was...moderately impressed. It was OK. It was fine. The store itself was a bit small and crowded, and I didn't see an extraordinarily grand number of healthy/organic items. But my friend Jen and I agreed that the store that was about to open a few miles away might have a better selection, and we made a plan to go check it out.

(By the way, the store is called Aldi. Not Aldis or Aldi's. ALDI. THERE IS NO S. Thanks.)

That store, in Tucker, GA, just opened a few days ago, and today we went over. The store was, as new stores are, shiny and clean, but it was also BIGGER than the closer store and it definitely had a wider selection of organic produce and other items. It also seemed like things that were out of stock at the closer Aldi were plentiful at the new store.

And so I shopped. And shopped. And shopped.

I couldn't find the energy to make a haul video, and my husband wanted to put everything away, but I snapped some pictures and will tell you about the things I bought in this Aldi haul. In short: I'm now impressed and I can see an Aldi-Costco-Kroger-YDFM synchronicity building.

Two jars of fancy salsa (one mango peach, one black bean and corn) - $1.99 each
Unsalted almonds - $4.99 for 14 oz.
Two jars of Indian simmer sauce - Jalfrezi and Tikka Masala (my husband was VERY excited about these) - $1.99 each
String cheese (not sure if this is an amazing price and I think the Costco price is better but we are out and won't likely get back to Costco for another two weeks - 12 sticks for $2.79 **This is a 10 oz. package for $2.79, and Trader Joe's is 12 oz. for $2.99....
And "Caramel Coconut Fudge Cookies" that look quite similar to a certain cookie sold by a certain organized group (I will make a donation or something) - $1.79 and I hope they're as delicious

The Fit & Active 100 calorie snack packs of cookies and the Fiber Now bars (also easily comparable to identical name-brand packaged foods like these) I got to keep at my desk at my NEW JOB HOORAY! to keep me away from the vending machines (and the donuts that apparently appear from time to time) - $2.19 for the cookies, $1.49 for the bars
The two noodle bowls, both happily marked "VEGAN" so I didn't have to squint at the ingredients, are also for work - $1.69 each, which is an unbeatable price compared to Annie Chun's, which are a dollar more at Kroger. If these are good I'll probably stock up (though I think they might be a limited time thing....which is a side of Aldi I'm not as much of a fan of).
And the organic "Intercontinental Super Grains" was an impulse buy - $2.49, which probably is a decent-but-not-amazing price but it looked good and I bought it so there. I was impressed that Aldi carries this type of thing.

Booze! My husband got a Winking Owl Shiraz for $2.89. I submitted the receipt to BevRage under "any red wine" and got a dollar back! (You can download the BevRage app at your favorite app store but then please use my referral code and we'll both get $2! Code: TWVQMIJU  ) I got this "Wicked Grove" hard cider six pack for $6.49. Even on sale, cider at Kroger hovers around $7.50, so this was another good deal.

This is an example of NOT A GOOD DEAL and also READ THE LABELS ALWAYS and COSTCO WINS. These packages look identical, no? Rice rollers, hooray! The one on the left - Bamboo Lane - is from Costco and is clearly marked "vegan." The one on the right - Fusia - is from Aldi. Fusia rice rollers are only $1.29 per package....but they have gelatin, which I don't eat. The four-pack at Costco is $6.99, so SLIGHTLY more per package, but I can't eat the cheaper ones at Aldi anyway so the choice is kind of obvious. My husband is eating them instead. Not a terrible mistake for a buck. Now I know.

My fun splurge - I saw this Easy Home handheld steam cleaner in the Aldi circular last week and was happy to see that it was still available (the store had plenty of them - they also had a garment steamer that I kind of wish I'd bought too). I've already tested it out and it works well. It has a bit of a plastic smell that I hope dissipates, but the steam was powerful and it cleaned my sink relatively well. Nothing miraculous, but it was only $20 and I kept my expectations low.

What else did I buy? Not pictured:

FROZEN AND PACKAGED FOOD:
Unsweetened almond milk (refrigerated) - $1.99 (I rarely see the name brands for under $2.50 but can probably hit this price with a coupon/sale on occasion. For comparison, Trader Joe's has it for $2.99, and it's on sale this week at Kroger for $2.49 but that's part of a larger buy-six-get-$6 sale.)
A quart of organic unsweetened whole milk yogurt that looks identical to Stonyfield for $2.99
A box of whole grain waffles for $1.29 (Kroger has frozen waffles on sale sometimes 10/$10 but I'm not sure if they're whole grain or not, I'll have to check)
A box of "Moo Tubes" which are basically Go-Gurt....which I HATE BUYING but these had reasonable ingredients and no food dyes, and my kid loves them frozen, and, again, I think they're a better price at Costco (Costco definitely has a slightly healthier version) but at $1.79 for an eight pack I gave in. (*I checked - these are slightly cheaper than the Yoplait brand available at Costco but only by a few cents per pouch, and I still like the ingredient list of the Yoplait version better.)
A frozen spinach and goat cheese pizza that was more appealing to my husband than the larger take-and-bake cheese pizza for $3.49
A bag of frozen edamame for $1.69
Three boxes of "fruit squeezies" that are basically Gogo Squeez for $1.89 for four. Kirkland applesauce pouches are cheaper by a few cents per pouch, but these had different flavors (apple peach and...two others, I forget). Another "tide us over until we can get to Costco" purchase.
Cheese crackers (Cheezits) that my husband haaaad to haaaaave for $1.59
Two cans of cannelini beans for 65 cents each
A bottle of organic salad dressing (chipotle ranch) for $1.99
A bottle of Catalina dressing for $1.29
Organic honey for $3.49
A can of mixed nuts that my kid haaas to haaaaave for $2.79 (better price than anywhere else even if it's a ridiculously overpriced item *cough*)
The same pea crisps that I bought last time in the video for $1.39

BREAD
Basic boring whole wheat bread for $1.39
Sourdough square bread for $2.99 (YDFM's sourdough isn't THAT much more expensive and WAY BETTER but we're out of bread so.)

PRODUCE (I still have to figure out if YDFM beats these prices - I think it may):
A bag of Cara Cara oranges for $3.49
A bag of sweet potatoes for $1.79
A bag of organic baby carrots for $1.49
A four-pack of zucchini (out of season but SO GOOD for spiralizing) for $1.99
Two avocados for 99 cents each (eh - they're big ones but still....)
A package of three green peppers (yuck I hate green peppers) for 99 cents
A 2 pound bag of sweet onions for $1.49

HOUSEHOLD
A three pack of scrubbing sponges (like Scotch Brite) for $1.29
A box of 40 storage bags (quart size) for $1.99

AND FINALLY....a cat scratcher that my cats are currently ignoring after sniffing at it briefly because cats for $4.99

And the saddest tale of woe - I was sure I bought their Laughing Cow knockoff (pepper jack!) but it was not anywhere to be found and it's not on my receipt either so I guess I either put it back or the cashier didn't scan it.

But the best part was that because the store is new, they had coupons for $5 off a $30 purchase and a) the cashiers were scanning them for everyone even if we didn't have the physical coupon (because we didn't) and b) my cashier went "oh, you can break up your transactions" so I did two transactions and thus saved $10! (I could've saved $50 but she realized she could break things up when I hit $60 on the first one, oh well. STILL!)

And so in the end I spent about $110 total for EVERYTHING (about $90 on food).

I'm impressed and excited and definitely am going to be shopping at Aldi again and again and again. Not Aldi's. Not Aldis. ALDI. WITHOUT AN S.

Checking out Aldi for the first time - Vlog of my haul

WHY do I like to both watch and make haul videos of groceries?

Why do any of us do it?

I guess it's because I like to see what's available, what the prices are, what people are buying (I'm nosy!), and what I might buy on my own next trip.



Anyway, I finally went to Aldi with a friend of mine to see if it was as amazing in person as it seemed to be in haul videos and from what several friends had told me. Aldi seems to inspire a LOT of gushy love. Above, you can find my vlog about what I bought.

My overall impression? It's OK. My friend and I (the "we" I'll refer to in this post) did go to a smaller store this time, but we made plans to see if the brand new store (opening in a few weeks) has a better selection of organic/healthy type items. The store we were at was also....not the cleanest? For example, I found organic salad dressing in glass bottles that seemed to be a good price for a quality product - but several of the bottles had drips on them. I didn't buy it.

I also felt the same way about a lot of the items that I felt when I went a few years ago - still a lot of processed food (and I'm not AGAINST processed food but I do try to watch out for certain ingredients). Not a lot of vegetarian options (could be the store? for example, the take and bake pizzas were all very meaty....but maybe a different store catering to a different clientele would have veg versions?). No tofu. No whole wheat pasta. Basically for my family, Aldi could never be our main store. Costco comes closer to that when we combine it with YDFM and Kroger.

HOWEVER, what I bought was all really impressive to me, price-wise. That almond milk is SO cheap and if it's good, I'll gladly switch to it. The "premium ice cream" that's clearly a Ben & Jerry's copycat was half the price of B&J. The plastic bags beat Target's everyday price (I just hope they're good quality). And of course if you watch the video you'll hear just how happy I was about the Zulka. I didn't buy whole bean coffee because I'd just bought a bag at Costco, but the price was comparable and it was fair trade (and maybe even organic? I can't remember) so if I didn't want to buy two pounds at a time, I'd probably switch.

But the "organic" (faux-Annie's) mac and cheese that my kid lives on? Cheaper at Kroger and Costco. The baking soda - I think that's the same price at Kroger. I think the cheap mustard is the same price at Kroger too. I'm not sure if the pea crisps or the dried mango were particularly good prices - I kind of got overwhelmed in those sections and just...bought them. (The kid LOVED the pea crisps though. And she's picky.) Kroger and Trader Joe's both have $3 wine. (Sidenote: Aldi prosecco costs the same as Costco prosecco - $6.99 - and I couldn't tell the difference - my friend bought Aldi, I bought Kirkland, and we had a taste test.) And the plastic bags are probably the same price as Target when Target has a sale plus Cartwheel (which is often).

What I'm saying is that Aldi has potential for me. If I didn't have a Costco membership, it would definitely rank higher for me (and it is closer to where I live). If I didn't want to fuss with coupons and sales, it also would be more appealing - but I LOVE fussing with coupons and sales, and I can do really well at Kroger by doing so.

Stay tuned. In a few weeks we'll check out the new store and I'll let you know if that changed my mind at all.

Trying a New Grocery Tactic - October 2, 2013

If you didn't already know, both my husband and I work from home as freelancers. And this means that every month our bills are the same but our income fluctuates. It's continually a learning experience, and we always have to tweak things.

Money has been a bit tight for a few months, so I decided to dig into some of our financial choices and see where new changes could be made. After a chat with a friend of mine, I wondered just how much we were spending on groceries. We never set a specific budget, but I was sure we were fine - I use coupons! I shop sales! I'm vegetarian! I don't buy a lot of processed food!

I went into my files and did the math and...no. We were not fine. We spend way too much on groceries. And we've consistently been overspending for months.

I do shop carefully. I do shop sales. I do use coupons. And my family shops at a range of stores to get the most bang for our grocery buck...and there is what we realized is one of our downfalls. Every time we go to a different store (ahem, Trader Joe's and Whole Foods being the biggest culprits), we get the deals and the items on our list - and then, somehow, we also throw in special items that we can only get at that store. Even if those special items are on sale or inexpensive, they rapidly add up. I admit it - I was in deep denial about this. (Also my husband throws ridiculous things in the cart every time...ahem.)

I still believe that spending more at grocery stores on special treats keeps us out of restaurants and keeps us from stopping for treats (we're surrounded by amazing donuts, cupcakes, popsicles, gelato...). While we overspent in this area for sure, we also dramatically cut back on our purchases of prepared food of all kinds. So that worked. But right now we need to cut back even more. Treats? I've been making multiple batches of these amazing baked vegan apple cider donuts and I'm eyeing a recipe for pumpkin chocolate chip cookies next. I'm working on it!

So where am I going with all this? We're trying a new experiment. For the month of October, we're going to only shop at Your Dekalb Farmers Market (YDFM) for food - or at least 95% of our food. (As I've noted in the past, YDFM is a warehouse sized grocery store that's full of organic vegetables, bulk spices, and a gigantic wine selection. It's an amazing store, basically.) I started listing the things that we can only get at a mainstream grocery store and it was very short. The prices on a few things at YDFM (which is cash/debit only and does not take coupons) might be higher than the prices at Publix, Kroger, TJs, Whole Foods, but I think that the general pricing will balance that out.

Better, we'll buy mostly vegetables and basic ingredients if we shop at YDFM. The store does carry treats and snacks, but they're higher quality and easier to avoid as well. One of the best deals is a fresh-refrigerated pizza - far cheaper than going out for pizza and much healthier (and handily beats any general grocery store frozen pizza in all ways). And I won't be swayed by sales or deals because there aren't any. I think this could work.

I will need to shop at Publix or Kroger on occasion - there's a big sale on laundry detergent coming up, for example. If there's some amazing deal on something specific, then we'll run in - and only buy that thing. Yes we will. We will! (Sidenote: I am very disappointed that Kroger has stopped doubling coupons and claims to have "lower prices" that are, in fact, not so much.) This isn't a strict challenge or a game, it's a process. It's about being more mindful.

I'm trying really hard to think of what else I might need from one of the larger grocery stores. Well...YDFM doesn't carry string cheese and I might go get that elsewhere (or skip it, haven't decided). While it does carry the almond milk I drink every day, I can get a much better price with a coupon at Kroger, so I'll probably buy it there. Or maybe try making my own. YDFM carries organic cow milk but it's not homogenized and, well, I prefer that, so we'll have to get it elsewhere. And don't get me started on YDFM's bananas....

There's also a bread issue (oh fine, I'll confess - the preservative-free fresh-made bread sold at YDFM is so much better/tastier/healthier than shelf-stable bread, and I just read Pandora's Lunchbox: How Processed Food Took Over the American Meal[that's a referral link, FYI] and I know all about the junk in grocery store bread, but the good stuff goes bad so quickly unless I freeze it and I know it is because it's supposed to but...it's one processed food I got used to! This will be a change), but I might be able to make that work, and my entire family would be healthier if we only buy bread from YDFM.

But we'll skip TJs (we just did a giant run there anyway...oops...) and WF for the month. And also for the first time in possibly ever, I have a dollar figure that is our entire grocery budget for the month, and we are going to stick to it.

This is new territory for me - I prefer coupons and sales and "I saved 50% this week!" - but it's not working. So this is a step. I'll keep you posted on how it goes. Could this turn into "Every month I pick one store and only shop at it?" Maybe. But I actually think YDFM is the answer and the clear winner. We'll see.

Am I weird? How many places do YOU visit for groceries? - July 15, 2013

Yesterday as we were pulling away from the small local health food co-op, after shopping at one of the many outdoor farmers' markets in the area, it occurred to me that I shop at a LOT of different places for my groceries. And then I thought how lucky I am to have all these options...and I wondered if I was weird or if this was something everyone does. (I'm not a very good grownup. I have no idea what's right or wrong when it comes to everything from "Do these shoes go with these pants?" to "Is this how everyone else eats dinner?")

Partly this scatteredness does come from my wanting to find the best sales, get the best deals, and so on. That is absolutely true. But part of this is that I'm curious. What ingredients does that little shop over there carry? Does that giant chain have a better selection of flavors of something than that other chain? Is that place's bulk section any better than that other place's? And...of course...who has the best prices? (I do this when we're on vacation too - I went from a kid who would be dragged whining and screaming to a grocery store to an adult who wants to make the local grocery store a stop during any trip. "Ooh, they have this? And they triple coupons? And they charge $X for that?!"

To give you a lay of the land, we are a family of three, we keep a 99% vegetarian household (my husband buys tuna on occasion), and we try to eat as much organic/minimally processed food as possible, but we still occasionally buy things that are not organic, that are processed, and that might even contain questionable ingredients. We do our best. Also, I really should lay down an exact grocery budget and operate within it but...I don't. I do know that the more we buy at the grocery store - and the more appealing it is, even if it's something a bit pricey - the less we go out to eat (we are surrounded by incredible restaurants and constant temptation) and the more money we save in that way. Again, we do our best. My husband is the one who cooks dinner - he's better at throwing things together, I prefer to work from a recipe - so happily he's on board with the way I like to shop, more or less. The kid eats better than I would've expected and is willing to try new things sometimes - and she likes the grocery store too (though she freaks out when we get in line at the checkout about 75% of the time).

So here's my list of where I shop:

• Kroger. There's a small-ish store I can walk to for last-minute needs, a big-ish store I have personally driven* to but don't love, a very big store that we go to as a family (I probably could drive to it myself - I've driven past it before), and a two-level store that sometimes seems to carry more unusual things (for example, that specific branch of Kroger is the only place I've found Polar Seltzer - cans, basic flavors, but still! Polar!). In general I find the prices at Kroger to be OK. I hear people insisting Kroger is has the lowest prices, but only for some things I buy regularly - my favorite almond milk is cheapest here, for example. HOWEVER, lately I've found Kroger to have the best regular-grocery-store selection of organic items, and their in-house natural/organic brand (Simple Truth) is priced well and tastes good in everything I've tried. Slowly Kroger has been taking away coupon doubling in other regions, though, and I think mine is next. The e-coupons sometimes offer decent deals and are easy enough to use, but I will miss doubled coupons terribly if that goes away, and I may have to rethink my shopping if/when.
• Publix. There's a medium-sized store that I can easily get to and a bigger store that is a bit further (we literally drive past the medium-sized store to get to it) that is way better. Publix is the other big-name store I frequent, and I prefer it over Kroger. The BOGO deals are often great (I know the cycles of some of my favorites and wait to stock up on certain products a few times a year) - but they also seem to have better everyday prices on the things I buy often. The people who work at my favorite store are always fantastic - friendly, helpful, nice to my kid. But the organic selection just isn't as good, particularly when it comes to produce, and what they do have isn't always the best price. On the other hand, they don't make me carry a store card for the deals and there have been - thus far - no murmurs of discontinuing doubling coupons. Plus the stores near me take Kroger and Whole Foods coupons (wish they'd also take Target!). That's handy because Kroger often mails me high-value coupons (gleaned from my store card use, I know) and I can use them at either store.
• Your Dekalb Farmers Market (YDFM) - I wish I could just shop here and only here, to be honest. I have gone on and on before about my love of YDFM - the produce! the dry goods! the bulk spices, flours, sugars, grains, dried fruit.... (except you have to buy the bulk things pre-packaged rather than buying exactly what you need - a very minor quibble). The cheese! The....everything! No coupons accepted, cash/debit only, easy easy. I just buy what I want and I know I'm getting a great deal on it all. Bonus: The more I shop at YDFM, the less I buy processed anything. (YDFM certainly sells processed food, and one time I bought in-house-made bread and was disappointed to find it had partially hydrogenated oil as an ingredient, but when I go, I spend the bulk of my grocery money on fresh things. Tangent: I used to buy these lovely little fancy ice cream sandwiches there until I read up about titanium dioxide, decided to try to eliminate it from my diet, and then found it on the ingredient list. Sad trombone.)
• Whole Foods - Usually we go when we need something very specific (vitamins, mostly) but then we wind up spending $50+. I don't even know on what - some produce, some bulk items (I do love their bulk section), some...impulse buys. Also: Cheese samples.
• Trader Joe's - I regularly pay the Trader Joe's tax of $50 per walkin (as in, I can't get out of there without spending at least $50). I absolutely love and adore TJs and we used to go about twice a month but lately we've cut back. The prices on some things are excellent, but I always buy things I don't actually need while I'm there. Those things are, again, well priced but not essential. But I like to go at least once a month or two now for some items I can't get elsewhere.
• Super H-Mart - I get here once every two months or so. Great deals on noodles and rice and certain spices and sauces. The branch that's a bit farther away has house-made tofu that is to die for. An amazing selection of produce - not all of it is organic, but it's always fresh and sometimes I find certain fruits/veggies I don't see elsewhere. I used to buy a lot of cookies and candy until I got more sensitive about ingredients (boo). I have a store card and I get their coupon books in the mail.

Those are the stores I go to more than, say, twice a year. But then there are the other stores I go to here and there. Return 2 Eden is a local health food store that is the only place in the Southeast that stocks May Wah fake meat (the best stuff ever - I actually need to get over there for a bag of the fake chicken legs...). Sevananda is a local co-op that has an incredible bulk section. My city has a twice-a-week outdoor farmers' market that we go to sometimes, and then we go a bit out of our way for a really great one on Sundays (and I keep meaning to check out some others in the greater Atlanta area too). We just went into the Fresh Market for the first time and I could see us going back to it once in a great while. There's a tiny market here in my little city that carries gourmet food items that we sometimes poke into. I wish I could get to the Buford Highway Farmers Market more often (I've been once or maybe twice) because I've never seen such a grand selection of international foods in one place before (it's overwhelming!). Oh and then there's Target - the one closest to us just expanded its grocery section and while it's not usually convenient to get much there for various reasons, it has the best price for the bread my family prefers and sometimes, of course, since I'm there I'll get something specific I'm out of. I have been in Aldi approximately three times ever and wasn't impressed with it enough to go out of my way (which I'd need to) but if I was somewhere next to one I'd probably run in for a few things. Please notice that I do not and will never shop at a certain very large very upsetting store with a W. Prices be damned, I just can't do it.

And I am sure I'm forgetting something too.

Again, I'm really lucky to have this sort of variety and choice - but I also take full advantage of it, and I can't imagine paring it all down to a single store.

What about you? Do you shop at more than one place? If you don't because you don't have the variety near you, would you if that were to change?

*I've got a wicked huge driving phobia going on. That's why I mention driving so often. It's essentially me saying how close or far something is from my house though.